Culture Project

CJ Nielson

Culture Project

CJ Nielson

Customs and traditions

Customs

Whenever I go to my Grandma B's house with my family, we always play cards. And if we forget we come back the next weekend or so just to play! It seems like no matter whose house we're at, there's a certain game we play. For example, at my Grandpa Roger's house we play scrabble. I'm not really sure why, but we do. It's really fun! I also go to girl scout camp with my best friend Stephanie. We go to horse camp for five days and we get to ride horses as well as take care of them! It's a great experience.

Religion

Our religion is pretty easy to understand. We're Lutheran but we are also a part of ELCA which stands for Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. This means that our church isn't as strict as other churches as far as rules go. For example, my neighbor is Lutheran but she isn't in ELCA so her church isn't aloud to have a female pastor. There's other rules that we are more lenient on than other churches. So you can be Lutheran, but there are different types of Lutheran.

Values

My family values most things a regular family would value. We support good grades, college, trying to live the best life we can. We also think being close to family members and helping others is important. Most of my family members on my mom's side were in the military. My Uncle Steve, Uncle Jeff, Great Uncle Lee, Aunt Amy, and my Great Uncle Billy who was killed in the Vietnam War were in the Army. My Aunt Donna and Grandpa Roger were in the Air Force. Grandpa Nielson on my dad's side was in the Navy, and currently my cousin David is in the Army.

Recreation

Recreation is very important in my family. I've been playing soccer since I was four years old. My sister started soccer at a young age too, but she quit in sixth grade because she started teen company for dance at Anita's Dance Center. She was doing dance along with soccer but teen company practices a lot more so she had to pick one. Seventh grade was also when she started doing cheer. My sister is still a cheerleader as a sophomore, but she had to quit dance. I am still in soccer and I used to be in dance but I quit around fourth grade. My mom played basketball and volleyball in high school, and my dad played football as well as golf. However, he didn't play golf throughout all four years of high school. My parents say that you need to be involved in some sort of activity to keep in shape, so we never get more than a month off from activities. My grandpa also hunts for deer, and my whole mom's side goes fishing as well as my dad's side who lives up north.

Art/Music/Literature

Both my sister and I play piano as well as another musical instrument. I play clarinet and she plays alto-sax. She is also in color guard because she doesn't like doing marching band. My mom played oboe and tenor-sax in high school. My dad played alto-sax and guitar which he still plays today. My sister, dad and I speak Spanish, or are taking Spanish class, and my aunt speaks German. My half-aunt lives in England and sounds British. It's fun to hear her talk!